The Identity Debate of Ismail Kadare Versus Rexhep Qosja
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THE EUROPEANIZATION OF THE ALBANIAN NATIONAL IDENTITY: THE IDENTITY DEBATE OF ISMAIL KADARE VERSUS REXHEP QOSJA Lecturer Hazbi LIKA1 Abstract Debates and discussions on the national identity of Albanians, respectively the civil belonging of this identity, has its genesis since the period of the Albanian National Renaissance. At that period of time, the Albanian Renaissance’s representatives faced the civil belonging’s dilemma of the Albanian nation. This, because of the fact that Albanians had a nation, culture and language that belonged to Europe, but under five centuries of occupation of the Ottoman Empire were endowed with Oriental-Ottoman features and characteristics in many aspects of identity, culture, language, mentality, religion, etc. The western identity orientation of the Albanian renaissancers did not end the debate on Albanian civic belonging. Such debates continued throughout the twentieth century and continue to this day. Such is the debate between the most famous Albanian writer Ismail Kadare and the iconic scholar of Albanian culture Rexhep Qosja. This paper sets out and analyzes the views of these two predominantly Albanian intellectuals, the clash of these views, addresses the arguments of each and interprets them from a more objective perspective, including in the paper the views of other Albanian and foreign scholars and contributors to this cultural and identity debate that continues in Albanian society to this day. Being Kadare and Qosja the most influential intellectuals of the Albanian culture, the treatment of such a debate becomes of scientific importance. Keywords: Albanian, national identity, culture, europeanization. JEL Classification: H83, K10, K33 1. Introduction In the 2000s, the politician and publicist Abdi Baleta, together with the historian, professor at the University of Tirana, Hysamedin Ferraj, were the first to appear in public and diversify the opinion of their colleagues, building another discourse about our historical identity. They defended their theses by strongly asserting that Albania was built on a historical land with an Islamic-Oriental base. There were sporadic reactions at the time, but since these two protagonists and those who opposed them did not have such a high public profile, many things were said in the newspaper “Rimekembja” that was little known, but widely read. The debate did not get so big. When it seemed that this debate was fading, it suddenly flared up strongly at the moment when two high-profile public figures, one academic and scholar in Kosovo and Albania, the other the most famous writer of Albanian literature, strongly argued about historical identity of Albanians. This debate was provoked by the writer Ismail Kadare, when he wrote the essay "European Identity of Albanians" published by "Onufri" in 2006. Qose, the academic and scholar of the history of Albanian literature, had his response in the trilogy: "Neglected Reality"; "Ideology of Dissolution"; and "Delayed Truths," published by Toena in 2006. These essays provoked a wide public debate where the approach to Europe began to be thought more deeply and diversified, and in this logic, theories on the historical identity of Albanians would be enriched. The essence of the debate between these two figures and those involved in it, is: Kadare’s thesis is that Europe has a cultural identity of its own based on Western Christianity, and Albanians, in this view, are European. Qosja claims that Albanians have deep roots in European Christianity, but Albanian identity is complemented for centuries by Eastern Christianity and later by the Islamic Religion. Kadare identifies our cultural identity only with Western European Christianity, while he sees Islam as a deformer of our cultural gene, as “a foreign body” that caused our organism just anomalies. Qosja finds the subject of historical identity composed of three components: Western Christianity, Eastern Christianity and Oriental Islam. The essence of this debate took on media dimensions, involving many personalities of 1 Hazbi Lika - lecturer at “Aleksandër Moisiu University” of Durrës, Albania, [email protected]. Perspectives of Law and Public Administration Volume 9, Special Issue, September 2020 64 Albanian history and culture and some politicians. Historian Kristo Frashëri rose above this debate by calling both incapable of giving scientific definitions on issues of identity, as neither one nor the other belong to this field.2 Kristo Frashëri, first of all, excludes religion as an important element of cultural identity and rarely accepts it as such an element. Only in cases when this religion reflects ethnic sentiments, such as to Poles and Irish, where being Catholic further complements their ethnic identity. In his controversy; "The shortcomings of the Qose-Kadare debate", Frashëri defends the view that the European continent does not have a defined cultural and civic identity. It consists of a variety of national, cultural and civic identities, none of which can represent the cultural and civic identity of the continent. Even in this case, the cultural and civic identity of each European nation is in relation to what would be the European cultural identity, as part of the whole. In short, Europe as a continent has no real cultural and civic identity. If from this point of view we have to talk about a genuine European cultural and civic identity, - says Frashëri - we have to ask for this in the absence of a genuine European identity. Pëllumb Xhufi, historian and diplomat, speaks about this debate. Although he is careful not to offend anyone, he actually attacks Kadare's opinion: “What I would expect most in such a debate would be for it to develop as far away as possible from ideas like those of Samuel Huntington, the author of the evil theory of the "Clash of civilizations," which for some has become the ideology of our days. It seems to me that to some extent, Kadare has also fallen prey to such ideas, so in his recent writings a kind of complex stands out, when with a well-intentioned passion he tries to discover the Christian roots of Albanians and, possibly, to cover any other root, "which is not in vogue" today." Further, Xhufi again disagrees with Kadare's opinion, and does not consider it as Qose considers it: a neglected reality. But he advances more, defining it as a raped reality. "So, to say that Albanians have a Christian identity, turns violence against reality, because among them there are both Christians and Muslims, without forgetting the large number of non-believers (atheists). I judge, however, that Kadare’s reasoning ( my note) is only partially consistent with the truth. Despite good intentions, in a sense, they can contribute to take us away from reality, to aggravate us with non-existent complexes. For example like the Muslim component of our being, and ultimately the risk of orienting us in the right direction to false goals, such as those to put Albanians in a spiritual and cultural "purgatory", thus deserving of Europe, wrongly conceived as a Christian club. It seems to me that Prof. Qosja deeply knows and respects this reality, warning with patriotic courage and responsibility for the dangers that come with ignoring or distorting it.”3 Luan Rama, writer, diplomat and politician, claims that religion has no important role in the formation of national identity nor determinant, but it is simply an element of the culture of a nation. "To say that the identity of Albania is related to Christianity, which means to the West, is not a wrong expression. It is even realistic and very historical. "It is different to say it is 'connected,' and it is different to identify with Christianity or another religion”.4 Rama says that the history of Albania is related to Western Christianity, but not to be identified with Christianity. In a way, this also attacks Kadare's assertion. Paskal Milo, politician and historian, participates in this debate and expresses his views on the issue. "As a historian, I value the national identity of Albanians, as a product of historical development. The Europeanization of a nation is obviously not determined by any religion, because ethnicity is determined primarily by the historical geography of a nation, by the historical location of this nation, by economic factors, by linguistic factors and certainly also by religious factors. But religion is by no means the only criterion or main indicator to determine the national or even European identity of a nation, in this case the Albanian nation. Albanians are a European nation in terms of their historical geography in the first place, but they are also a nation with oriental Islamic influences due to a very long or five-century occupation of the Ottoman Empire. We cannot undo this historical 2 Kristo Frashëri, “ The shortcomings of Qose- Kadare debate” published in the press, Year 2006. 3 P. Xhufi; “Tirana Observer” Newspaper, 2006. 4 L. Rama, Newspaper 01.05.2006. Perspectives of Law and Public Administration Volume 9, Special Issue, September 2020 65 fact. Whether we like it or not, these centuries have left in the consciousness and in the national formation of the Albanians an indelible influence, which has gradually decreased, but still remains a tangible reality ".5 Arbën Xhaferri, a politician and political scientist, also becomes part of the debate and gives his opinion on national identity. He considers religion important for the formation of national identity. “People who do not have a national identity try to invent it through religion, politics or geographical affiliation. According to an unwritten historical rule, national identity forms the nation-state, while religious identity forms supranational states, the so-called integralist ones”.6 Although he does not fully acknowledge it, he somehow acknowledges that religion itself has attempted to produce a certain national identity. "People who do not have a national identity tend to invent it through religion." With this, A.